Being the most spiritually significant place in the world, the Holy Land gets its share of well-known pilgrims as well as average travelers. You’d probably recognize some of the well-known people the Holy Land Franciscans have hosted in recent years. Here are a few of them: Famous Holy Land Pilgrims George [...]

Barbara Ostrin’s Holy Week pilgrimage was so memorable right from the very beginning, with her trip starting with a historic storm. Her large group of 48 pilgrims almost didn’t make it out of New York City’s JFK airport. Winter Storm Toby, the fourth Nor’easter to hit the East Coast in the month of March, stranded [...]

A Holy Land Christian artisan works with mother-of-pearl. Christians in the Holy Land are often referred to as “Living Stones.” This term was made popular over time since Palestinian Christians are the people who descend from the first Christians. Their ancestors were there when the Spirit fell during Pentecost, and [...]

A Deeper Look Into An Historic Pilgrimage The First American Catholic Pilgrimage to Palestine, 1889 chronicles the first Catholic pilgrimage guided by the Holy Land Franciscans nearly 130 years ago. The Franciscan Friars of the Holy Land guided pilgrim Reverend James Pfeiffer and his companions, and they continue to guide pilgrims through the [...]

GF = gluten free Those who aren't used to traveling and those with less than adventurous palettes often ask about the food in the Holy Land. Is it good? What kinds of dishes will we be eating? What if I have dietary restrictions? Not only do pilgrims often rave about the food, but they [...]

When talking with our pilgrims who’ve returned from the Holy Land, one of the many highlights they love to share is how moved they were by getting the opportunity to renew their wedding vows at the church that marks the site of the Wedding of Cana. This is, of course, the spot of Jesus’ [...]

Experience Christmas in the Holy Land Christmas in the Holy Land is unlike Christmas anywhere else in the world. Experiencing Christmas in the Holy Land includes very special opportunities such as a walk through the ancient streets of Jerusalem, taking part in traditional Christmas parades, attending Christmas Mass, or frolicking in the snow at [...]

Chronicling an Historic Pilgrimage The First American Catholic Pilgrimage to Palestine, 1889 chronicles the first Catholic pilgrimage guided by the Holy Land Franciscans 129 years ago. The Franciscan Friars of the Holy Land, who guided Rev. James Pfeiffer and his companions all those years ago, are still guiding pilgrims through the Holy Land today. [...]

Have concerns about the safety of traveling to the Holy Land? Fear no more! This handy map and the wisdom of Fr. David Wathen, OFM, Director of the Franciscan Monastery Pilgrimage Office in Washington, D.C., will help reassure you of the safety of a Franciscan Holy Land pilgrimage. The image below illustrates the path [...]

Pope St. John Paul II: Pilgrimage Helps Us Remember Our Roots Stations of the Cross, Pasierbiec City, Poland "To go in a spirit of prayer from one place to another, from one city to another, in the area marked especially by God's intervention, helps us not only to live our life [...]